Respeto/Proteger is a six-session, 12-hour HIV prevention program for young Latino parents with children who are at least three months of age. The program builds on feelings of parental protectiveness and the emotional attachment between a parent and a child to positively affect parental behavior. The curriculum integrates basic instruction in HIV awareness and prevention with culturally relevant discussions and activities on fatherhood, rites of passage, decision making, and responsibility. The program is delivered to small groups of couples in community and clinic settings. Couples are defined as individuals who have been involved in a romantic relationship for at least three months. The male partner is not required to be the child’s biological father.
